Drive for corn pickers



Feb. 23, 1954 w. J. DWYER 2,669,824

DRIVE FOR CORN PICKERS Original Filed Dec. 15, 1945 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR ATTOQNGY- Feb. 23, 1954 w J, DwYER 2,669,824

DRIVE FOR CORN PICKERS Original Filed Dec. 15, 1945 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEY Feb. 23, 1954 w, DwYER 2,669,824

DRIVE FOR CORN FICKERS Original Filed Dec. 15, 1945 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 wd-W9 UM aimwama Feb. 23, 1954 w. .1. DWYER DRIVE FOR CORN PICKERS Original Filed Dec. 15, 1945 5 e t hee 4 ATTORNEY Feb. 23, 1954 w. J. DWYER 2,669,824

DRIVE FOR CORN PICKERS Original Filed Dec. 15, 1945 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Feb. 23, 1954 UNITED STATEfi FFEQE DRIVE FOR CORN PICKERS William J. Dwyer, Battle Creek, Mich assignor to J. I. Case Company, Racine, Wis, a corporation of Wisconsin (Cl. Hit-18) 1 Claim. l

"he present invention relates to agricultural machines and more particularly to corn pickers and an object thereof is to generally improve the construction and operation of machines of this type.

This application is a division of application Serial No. 635,256 filed December 15, 1954, which has matured into Patent No. 2,527,802.

Corn pickers of the type including substantially parallel forwardly and downwardly extending rollers are wellknown and the present in vention relates to machines having these general characteristics. such machines in the past however have been heavier and more complex than necessary and accordingly a further object of the invention is to materially simplify such a machine and at the same time to materially reduce the weight thereof and accordingly the cost of the material necessary to produce it.

A further object is to reduce the cost of such a machine by providing a novel construction which will greatly reduce the number of operations and accordingly the amount of labor necessary to produce and assemble the machine.

Further objects are to provide improved expedients for shifting the machine laterally to avoid unnecessary trampling of the crop when opening a field; to improve the cleaning expedients; to materially stiiien and strengthen the construction and to simplify the mechanism for driving the various units of the machine.

Further objects and advantages will become apparent from a consideration of the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein a satisfactory embodiment of the invention is shown. However, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the details disclosed but includes all such variations and modifications as fall within the spirit of the invention as herein claimed.

Similar reference characters have been applied to the same parts throughout the specification and the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a two-row machine embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a right side elevation of the machine taken along line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Fig. 3 is a rear elevation of the structure shown in Fig. 1 with parts broken away and shown in section.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary left side elevation of the machine;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary sectional view on the line 5-5 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of certain structure it indicated in Fig. 2 taken from the right and slightly to the rear;

Fig. 7 is a plan view of a portion of the structure shown in Fig. l with parts broken away showing the parts in a different position;

Fig. 8 is a plan View with parts broken away and considerably enlarged of gearing and clutch mechanism indicated in Fig. 1;

Fig. 9 is enlarged View taken normal to certain snapping rolls indicated in Fig. 3 substantially on the line til of Fig. 3:

As seen in Figs. 1 and 3, the machine comprises supporting wheels W and W and a stress bearing member generally designated as 10 serving as a main foundation or backbone of the machine. Member to has pivoted thereto a draw bar generally designated as l i and a picking unit generally designated as $2 in the present instance operative on two rows of corn at the same time. Unit !2 is rigidly mounted on member it, the latter being controlled by an adjusting lever generally designated as it, the structure so far recited constituting the main elements of the machine. It will now be apparent that the corn picker does not have the usual type of frame, the member Hi taking its place, and the icking unit is being united therewith in a novel manner as will appear.

Member ill in the present instance comprises a tube or pipe of substantial size so as to have the stability in bending and torsion necessary to carry the weight of the entire machine and the twisting stress imposed by the overhung picking member l2. Rigidly fixed to member in and extending forwardly therefrom is a pair of uniplanar plates M and 15 best seen in Fig. 5. These uniplanar plates are spaced apart to form a stalkway [6 for the downward passage of the corn stalks in well-known manner. Plates I l and l 5 are made of sufiicient thickness to be selfsupporting and are preferably welded to pipe l0. Plate It has an outwardly turned flange I? at its upper extremity and an outwardly turned flange H3 at its lower extremity, flange it being also preferably welded to pipe ill. In this manner, plate 14 is very strongly united to pipe Ill, in fact so strongly as to be capable of supporting other elements of the machine. A substantially similar arrangement in the present instance provides a second stalkway l9, plates 2t and 2! being also united to pipe I it so that two rows of corn may be picked simultaneously. Plate 20 has a lower outwardly turned flange 22 and an upper outwardly turned flange 23, the two flanges and plate forming a substantially triangular box-like unit as seen in Figs. 2 and 5. Plate at its rear extremity has an inwardly turned flange 24 which meets and is preferably fastened to an inwardly turned flange 25 on above mentioned plate 2| so that stalkway i9 is open at the top and bottom but closed at the back by flanges 24 and 25. In similar manner, stalkway H5 is closed at the back by flanges 26 and 21. An angle iron brace 28 preferably extends between and unites flanges 24, 25, 26 and 27. It will now be apparent that the main structural support of'the' machine comprises tubular member "ID and s-talkways l6 and It, the other major portions of the machine becoming fastened to and supported by this structure.

Member it has downwardly eXt'ending-ic'hannel members 29 and 30 to which ar attached stub axles 3| and 32 for supporting the machine from wheels W and W In this way member Hi is disposed substantially above the axis of wheels "W andW sd'as to give ample clearancefor stalks and trash beneath the machine.

--Draw"bar H is composed-in the'presentin- *s'tance'of channels 33"and 36' United at an apex 35, the channels being spaced apart at their rear "eiitremities as seen Fig-l. Channel 33 is 'piv- *oted-to"abovementioned channel 29 at'36 while channel 3% is pivoted at =3! to a'brac'ketttrigidly' u-nitedwith pipe "i0. Channel- 29 extends up- -ward1y=and has united therewith an upper mem ber 39 and a 'lbw'ermember l-fl'of above mentionedadjustinglever i 3, 1ever* 33 having a detent ll*engageable"with a'ra ck or quadrant ltconneeted arcs-wan draw barl r so that the angular position'ofpipe l il- (and accordinglyof picker unit- 12) can'be adjusted by* means ofl'ever 13; the

adjustment being maintained by rack' t2.

"Drawbar l I has a 'tongue portion' it' which in the present instance is bifurcated and pivoted-at to across member- 45 carried by side chan "nels' 33-and34. Tcngue' ltis fixed-substantially "lengthwise'of channel 33by means of a pin or the like ll' fix'ed in-relatiomto apex portion Tongue M- therefore 'becomesa rigid part'of draw me'ans' of a 'hitchpin 48. -It will *now-be-apparent that 1 tractor T may 'be run in a substantially offset position relatively to picker unit 42. "Tongue M,'howev'er; maybe swung tothe-dotted r-pbsition of Fig; l'aboutpivot45, pind'l-being-first removed' 'and then replacedin an opening '49 in -chahnel*3 l. this manner, the machine will take up apositionsubstantially more nearly directly" behindtractor- T," thus bringing the trac- -=tor and picker unitlil as close together as-pracr tical. In thisposition, the-outfit may proceed through the held without disturbingmore than "onerow of corn in-addition to those pickedby unit i2.- Also'this position of tongue 44 narrows the assemblage for--more -convenient passage through farmgates'and for transportation on the highway.

I Flanges -I'l and-23-forming-th upper-margins of plates l4 and 2llrespectively formthe supporting-means for outerpicker points and 5! which may be of-any suitable construction inso- -far as support from plates M and 20 is concerned, 'in'thepresent instance a strip of wood 52 being mounted-on flange l1 and carrying pointlit by means of an angle iron brace 53. Point 50 is formed of sheet metal bent to the necessary shape in well-known manner. Point 5| is mounted in a "similar manneron flange 23. Inner platesj l' and?! have 'downw'ardly'turn ed flanges 54 and 55 extending substantially parallel to above'm'enis of a 'typewel'l-known in corn pickers of this general type and should notne'ed be "described in detail. Sufficient to say, it comprises a housihg 55 supported on above mentioned angl iron 28, housing 59 being united to picker points 50 and iii by guiding sheets as Gil and El. Housing 59 has a shaft 62 journaled therein carrying zspro'okets as 63 for driving a raddle type elevator generally designated as 65 of well-known type and which does not need to be further described,

le'vator 'M' raisingears picked by the machine to 4o -13- having a dividing partition-M above'and below a -po'int above 'a chute (i5 inclined downwardly and tothe left as seen in Fig. 3. Chute S5 is supported from above mentioned housing 59 and at its lower end on a bracket 56 extending rearwar'dly from 'tubul'ar member "Hi,- the chute B5 servi'ng'to transmit the'picked -ears toawagon "elevator as'will appear.

For cleaning the harvested crop; a' fan El is supported above chute 65 for example by brackets "68 "and has a discharge duct or nozzle be directed =tr ansver'sely "tothepath of the "crop' in' dropping from elevator t lfi into chute 65. The right end of chute-'65 is open'as'indioateddn- Fig: 3 and the blast from nozzle 69 is sufficiently strong to propel substantiallyall trash; loose husks, etc, out of the right and of i chute-65 while "the ears i being heaVi'eriallthrough the-blastand gravitate toward the left in chuteSB.

nated as l l extending rearwardly fromthemachine" and having a 'hopper ll-into which ears may empty frQmchuteEE. Elevator -'I I is of'wellknown constru-ction =comprising an outer 'casing which travels an *el'idless chain =l'5 carrying a series of-bucketslfi Chain l 5 is propelled-by a sprocket '1!- on a' shaft i8 carried in bearings 19 and -81! 1 supported onbrackets I ll and -1il and in "turn 'pivotally supporting housing 13. 'Elevator '1 l is thuspivotallyindependent of tubular member "Hi and-is carried in-its rearwardly inclined manner "fully described and l claimed in the copending application of -Magee, serial -No.

145,732, filed'October 20, -194l,-now Patent'Numher I 2,408,939. It will be apparent that as *memher 4 0 and" its attached :partsare rocked fora-d- --just1nent-the height of picker unit 12,-thg-upper not rise and fall to- -any:-appreciable extent in *response to 'suchrocking. This disposition-of elevator ll providesiortrailing a" receiving wagon I directly behind the corn picker 1 which avoids extending the assemblag -laterally beyond the'tractoreven when tractor I is positioned-as close aspossible to picker unit-i 2.

in the past; Wagons for this purpose have-been extended to the opposite side-of-the tractor irom --picl :er-unit l2. -This-,-however,g is a serious--distractor trampled one or two more which were-not picked. The wagon then trailing to the left often trampled another row. Of course on'the "next round the tractor and wagon would travel in the picked area so thatthe disadvantage-zapplied only to the field opening process. In the present arrangement, however, since the tractor and the wagon run in a path quite close to picker unit I2, only one row of corn is trampled in addition to those picked, even in the field opening operation. Thus is avoided to a large extent one of the most serious objections to the separate or pull type corn picker, for the elimination of which resort has been had in the past to the cumbersome and expensive tractor mounted type of corn picker.

The operative units of the corn picker are substantially conventional and will be described as they are reached. However, the drives for these units have been substantially simplified and will be described.

Tractor T has a power take-off shaft 82 which drives through a tumbler shaft of well-known type 83, a drive shaft 04 in the present instance slidably journaled in a steady bearing 84 and driving through a safety clutch 85 and a universal joint 89, a shaft 81 journaled in a gear casing 09 supported on a bracket 89 carried by above mentioned member I0. Shaft 01 carries a pulley 90 which drives through a belt 91 (in the present instance, although not necessarily, a multiple V-belt), a pulley 92 on a shaft 93, being the spindle of a snapping roll 94 located in stalkway I6 in well-known manner. By virtue of the substantial center-distance between pulley 90 and pulley 92 no special provision need be made for the slanted relation of shaft 01 and shaft 03, belt 9I twisting sufficiently to transmit the power without further complication.

Shaft 93 drives through a gear 95 Fig. 9, a gear 90 fixed on a shaft 91 constituting the axis of a snapping roll 98 arranged in stalkway If; in cooperative relation with above mentioned snapping roll 94. Shaft 93 also drives, through a sprocket 99 and a chain I00, a sprocket I i, Fig. 3, on a shaft I02 constituting the axis of a snapping roll I03 arranged in stalkway I9. Shaft I02 has a gear I04 driving a gear I05 fixed on a shaft I06, constituting the axis of a snapping roll I01 arranged in stalkway I9 in cooperation with above mentioned snapping roll I93. Chain I00 is carried beneath elevator housing 59 on an idler I08 supported on a bracket I09 fixed on member I0. Bracket I09 also carries a brace H0 pivoted thereto at III extending to above mentioned elevator II to provide against lateral swaying thereof. The upper run of chain I00 passes through elevator casing 59 between the two runs of conveyor 04 and is guided by idlers as II2. Snapping rolls 94, 98, I03 and I01 are of wellknown or other suitable construction and need not be further described. It is to be noted that chain I00 and gears IM and I05, etc., are readily lined up in common planes substantially at right angles to the several snapping rolls, whereas the misalignment between pulleys 90 and 92 is readily accommodated by belt 9|. In this manner, a very simple and direct drive is provided for the major power using elements of the machine, all bevel gears being eliminated in this high power drive.

In the present instance axial movement of drive shaft 84 in bearing 8 1 provides for rocking of tubular member I0 and its attached parts without interference from said shaft.

For driving fan 41 a pulley I I3 is fixed on above mentioned shaft 01 and drives, through a belt IIA, a pulley II5 on a shaft II6 of the fan, an idler II1 being adjustably mounted on a bracket II8 for adjusting the tension of the belt.

Gear box 83 has a gear II9, Fig. 8, therein driving through a gear I20, a shaft I2I extending substantially parallel to above mentioned member I0. Shaft I2I extends beneath elevator housing 59, Fig. 3, and has a pulley I22 driving, through a belt I23, a pulley I24 on above mentioned shaft 02. In this manner, elevator 94 is driven from shaft 81. An idler I25 adjustably mounted on a bracket I20 is used for adjusting the tension in belt I23. Shaft 2128 also drives wagon elevator H, a sprocket I21 being slidably journalecl on shaft I2I and having clutch teeth engaged with a clutch member I23. Sprocket I21 drives, through a chain I29, a sprocket I30, driving through a safety clutch I3I, above mentioned shaft Iii. Sprocket I01 may be shifted into and out of engagement with clutch I29 by means of a shipper mechanism I32 of suitable type controlled by a shifter rod I33. In the present instance, shipper I32 is shifted by a cam portion I 011 a lever I35 connected with above mentioned rod I33, lever I35 being urged in a direction to engage sprocket I21 with clutch I20 by means of a spring I36. By disengaging sprocket I21, wagon elevator 'II may be stopped for any purpose as for example changing wagons while any ears coming from elevator 94 may accumulate in chute 65. It will be observed that discontinuing the operation of elevator 'iI does not affect in any manner the operation of elevator 04.

Bearing ar is preferably supported on above mentioned tongue 00 as more particularly seen in Fig. l. A bifurcated upright I01 supports bearing bl in a roclrable manner by means of pivots 538 and E30 while upright I31 may pivot about a substantially vertical axis in tongue 44 so as to be self aligning with relation to shaft 80. Swinging of tongue 40 therefore causes no binding of bearing 84 However, an advantage results from the connection of bearing ti l with tongue 44 in that swinging of tongue 44 alters the position of shaft 84 so as to keep it generally directed toward tractor T in either the full line or dotted line position of Fig. 1 so as to avoid excessive angular displacement of tumbler shaft 83. This is well illustrated in Fig. 7. By virtue of this arrangement the several shafts will operate freely in either position of tractor T.

Shifter rod I33 is slidable in a bracket I40 in the present instance extended from adjusting lever I3.

This constitutes a description of the major units of the machine although it might be further noted that shafts I02 and I06 are supported in suitable bearings in a plate I4I fixed in relation to above mentioned flanges 24 and 25. A substantially similar construction is used in relation to shafts 93 and 91.

It is to be understood that the machine has gathering chains of substantially conventional type; for example, gear I 05 driving a gear I42 on a shaft I43 extending into a gear box I44 through which is driven a sprocket I45 by means of a safety clutch I 06. A gathering chain I41 extends about sprocket I45 and a sprocket I48 carried on a plate I49 extending forwardly from above mentioned flange 22, chain I41 extending about a spacer I50 corresponding with above mentioned spacer 52. Plate I49 forms a foundation for sprocket I43 and also for the lower end of snapping roll I01, a bracket l5I being fixed thereto and carrying a journal portion I52 on which roll I01 is rotatable in well-known manner. It will be understood that a gathering chain I53 similar to I41 is associated with roll 94 and 

